Check-controlled apparatus.



A. n. enovan & E. E. BARBER.

CHECK CONTROLLED APPARATUS.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE I2. 1911.

Patented Aug. 24, 1915.

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CHECK CONTROLLED APPARATUS.

- APPLICATION FILED JUNE 12, 191l- 1,151,5a9.a

Patented Au 24, 1915.

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ALBERT D. GROVER, OF MALDEN, AND EARLE. BARBER, ASSIGNORS TO BOSTON COIN MACHINES COMPANY,

onosnrrs.

0F BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS, A CORPORATION OF MASSA- CHECK-CONTROLLED APPARATUS.

Application filed June 12, 1911.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, ALBERT D. Gnovn'n and EARL E. BARBER, of Malden, in the county of Middlesex and State of Massachusetts, and Boston, in the county of Suffolk and State of Massachusetts, respectively, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Check-Controlled Apparatus, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to vending apparatus or machines adapted to contain a supply of goods for delivery in limited quantities upon unlocking the delivery devices for such goods by deposition of a coin or check.

Specification of Letters Patent.

The object of the present invention is to furnish an improved apparatus of this character of simple design and construction, which is yet capable of withstanding severe usage and is certain to operate as required under all conditions; which offers sufficient security against fraudulent operation; and which, in case the goods are exhausted, guards against the deposition and loss of a coin by an intending purchaser.

The manner in which the foregoing ob jects are carried into effect and the preferred embodiment of the principles of our invention in concrete form are. described in detail in the following specification, and are illustrated in the accompanying drawings.

In the latter, Figure 1 represents a side elevation of a check-controlled vending apparatus containing the features of our invention. Fig. 2 represents a front elevation of the same. Fig. 3 is alongitudinal section on line 33 of Fig. 2. Fig. 1 is a cross-section on line 4-4 of Fig. 2. Fig. 5 is a side elevation showing the opposite side of the apparatus from that shown in Fig. l and also illustrating the manner of securing a cover or casing thereto to prevent fraudulent operation. ,Figs. 6 and 7 are vertical sections on line 66 of Fig. 2, showing two steps in the operation ofthe device.

The same reference characters indicate the The particular embodiment of our invention chosen for illustration herein is designed for the vending of small articles such 1 as packages or tablets of confectionery,

chewing gum, etc., and with that end in view is made in such a form. that it may be mounted upon an upright wall or post, or

Patented Au 24, 1915. Serial No. 632,556.

on the back of a chair in a hall of entertainment. Accordingly the frame structure of the apparatus consists mainly of a plate 1 adapted to be secured to an upright supporting surface, carrying the workin parts of the apparatus, and having means or detachably securing a casing or cover by which access to the operating parts is prevented.

Projecting forward from the back plate 1.

is a rib 2 to which is secured a container or receptacle 3 for the goods to be vended, this receptacle, in the embodiment of the inven tion here illustrated, being shown as an upright box with open ends,and having a wide opening or slot on its forward side. Beneath the open lower end 'of the receptacle, such lower end being the outlet of the receptacle, is mounted a goods-delivering device or member 4, which is pivotally mounted in bearings in arms 5 projecting forward from the plate 1. In the particular embodiment of the invention here illustrated, the delivering member 4 has a munber of recesses 6 on different sides which are so shaped as to receive the articles 7 to be delivered. As in this form of the invention such articles are fiat tablets, the recesses are relatively shallow and wide, but it is to be understood, of course, that they may have any form which adapts them to the purpose of engaging and feeding articles of any special character, size or shape, in any desired numbers. These parts and others shortly to be described are inclosed in a casing 8 which fits around theperiphcry of the back plate 1 and is detachably secured thereto by means of pins 9 engaging hooks 10, and a bolt 11. Preferably the pins 9 are carried by the casing and the hooks 10 are secured to or formed on the back plate, and preferably alsothe bolt 11 is carried by the casing arranged so as to engage with a lug 12 on the back plate. The bolt 11 forms part of a lock 13 operable from the exterior of the casing by a-key, and it is so arranged relatively to the lug 12 as to prevent lifting of the pins 9 out of the hooks 10.

In the front of the casing is a discharge opening 14 for the goods, which is bounded by the guide walls 15, 15 and 16 extending rearwardly and upwardly to a point in rear of and below the delivering member 4:. The latter is designed to be turned in right-hand rotation (reference being bad to Figs. 1, 3, 6 and 7), and is so turned by the user or 55 between the shaft and pawl, allowing it to livering member.

.Motion of the operator of the apparatus through the agency of a knob or handle 17 exterlor to the casing and connected to the delivering member by a shaft or trunnion 18 thereof.

delivering member in this. direction is prevented by a pawl-and-ratehet locking mechanism, the ratchet member of which is represented by 19 and 1s preferably secured to the delivering member 1 upon the shaft thereof, and the pawl member of which locking mechanism is designated by 20 and is hung from a pivot 21 in an ear projecting from the back plate. A com chute or guide 23 leads from the front of the casing downwardly to a termination between the pawl 20 and shaft 18 of the de- A coin or check traveling through this guide strikes the pawl and lodges between it and the shaft 18, as shown in Fig. 6. The mode of mounting the pawlwhereby its toe 24: is suspended below its pivot enables the coin by virtue of its weight to force the toe out of engagement with the adjacent tooth of the ratchet. Such movement is resisted yieldingly by a spring 25 which normally holds the toe 24 in engagement with the nearest ratchet tooth, but is capable of yielding under the pressure of the coin. An auxiliary spring 26 ofvgreater stiffness also acts on the pawl and resists its further movement when the space between the pawl and shaft 18 is slightly less than the diameter of the coin. This spring 26 does not act when the pawl is in looking position, being restrained from following up the pawl bv a stop 27, and thus it does not interfere with the free unlocking movement of the pawl under the weight of the coin. Thus the coin in falling isenabled to unlock the pawl without fail under all conditions, because the resistance to the unlocking movement is greatly less than the pressure applied by the coin. When the pawl is disengaged from the ratchet, however, the movement stops at such a point that the coin is prevented from falling past the pawl by reason of the second spring 26 which exerts a greater pressure than that of the coin. Thus the coin is retained and in turn holds the pawl in unlocked position until the ratchet can be turned far enough to carry the tooth last engaged by thepawl somewhat beyond the toe of the latter. In thus turning, the shaft of the delivery member rolls on the periphery of the coin and crowds it fall into a receptacle beneath. A positive means also is provided for retracting the pawl sufficiently to allow the coin to pass, andsuch means consists of outwardly proectmg eccentric cam portions 28 on the ratchet wheel between the teeth thereof. The cam portions 28 extend farther from the axis of the ratchet than the points of the teeth, hence one of these portions ongages the toe' of the pawl as soon as the ratchet is rotated, and crowds it back, as shown in Fig. 7, leaving space between the pawl and shaft 18 to permit escape of the coin. The spring 26 yields under this positive pressure. After the coin is released, the tooth last engaged by the pawl has passed so far beyond the toe thereof that even though the pawl follows up the periphery of the ratchet, it does not lock the same until the next tooth comes into locking position. As the number of teeth of the ratchet is equal to the number of pockets or recesses of the delivering member, the latter is caused to'make one delivery without fail whenever a coin is deposited, and more than I one delivery is prevented. This mechanism inclined from the teeth of ratchet 19, and a pawl 30 coacts with the second ratchet. The teeth of this ratchet merely slip by the pawl when the pawl 20 is unlocked and the member 1 is delivering.

In order to insure a full travel of the delivering member in each actuation, we provide a centering I device or pusher in the form of a bar or lever 31 pivoted to a pin 32 in a lug 33 of the plate 1 and pressed toward the delivery member by resilient means such as a spring 34. This pusher engages a cam on the delivering member 4 or its shaft,-which cam has as many eccentrio projections 35 as there are pockets in the delivering member. \Vhen the delivering member has been turned through slightly more-than half the angle of a single delivery motion, the pusher 31 completes the motion automatically, and places the member in proper position to receive another article.

The apparatus is also equipped with a guard or shutter which prevents deposit of a coin when the goods receptacle has been emptied. The shutter is represented at 36 and is mounted so that it may cross the coin thereby moves the arm a distance sufficient to carry the gate 36 across the coin chute. This gate is so near the opening to the chute and to the slot in the casing through which the coin is passed, that it prevents entrance of the coin, and'so secures the intending I boundary of the delivery channel, so that the coin in falling past the pawl will pass outside of this wall. The pawl is directly behind and below the lower end of the chute, and the locking ratchet 19 is close to one side thereof. The toe of the pawl is offset laterally from the shank thereof to engage the ratchet without obstructing the coin.

A groove or channel 43 between the ends of the delivery members receives an ejector 44 which is pushed under the article carried by the, delivering device and removes such article and causes it to fall into the delivery channel in case it should stick to the delivering member or become crowded in the pocket thereof.

We wish to emphasize the fact that We do not limit ourselves to the exact form, construction and arrangement of the parts herein illustrated and described, because such illustration and description are given merely to explain one possible embodiment of our invention, without the intention of limiting the broader features of the invention to this particular embodiment. Wide variations from the forms herein shown and described may be made without departure from the broader aspects of the invention. For instance, it is not essential to the invention that the follower which operates the coin chute gate be a gravity-operated weight rather than a spring-operated device, nor is it essential that the delivering member be constructed in the manner or with the form here shown. In this feature in particular we contemplate making many and wide variations from the construction here shown by which not only the device may be made to operate upon articles of different characters, but it may be cheapened in construction, and we therefore reserve the right to make all conceivable alterations which do not destroy its character as a rotary delivering device or member.

We claim,

1. In a check-controlled vending apparatus, a rotary shaft, a ratchet fixed upon said shaft and having outwardly projecting cam surfaces between its teeth, a pawl normally engaging at one end said ratchet to prevent rotation thereof, and so arranged that the deposited check is held between said shaft and the engaging end of said pawl, the latter being adapted to be moved out of engagement with said ratchet by the weight of the check, and a pair of independent springs pressing the pawl between the ratchet, one of said springs permitting disengagement of the pawl from the ratchet under the weight of the check, and the other spring retaining the check until the pawl has been further displaced by the cam surface of the ratchet upon rotation of said shaft.

2. In a check-controlled vending apparatus, a rotary shaft, a ratchet fixed upon said shaft, a pawl arranged to engage said ratchet and prevent rotation of said shaft in the direction necessary to cause delivery of the goods, said pawl and said shaft being arranged to receive the deposited check between them, the weight of the check moving said pawl into releasing position, and means to guide the deposited check into proper position between said pawl and said shaft.

3. In a check-controlled vending apparatus, a rotary shaft, a ratchet fixed upon said shaft, a pawl arranged to engage said ratchet and prevent rotation of said shaft in the direction necessary to cause delivery of the goods, a guide arranged to conduct a check between said pawl and said shaft,

so that the weight of the check will release the pawl, yielding means tending to hold the pawl in engagement with the ratchet against the pressure of the check, and separate yielding means arrangedto offer such resistance to the movement of the pawl as to retain the check between said shaft and the pawl, after the latter has become disengaged from the ratchet, until the ratchet has been turned sufficiently to clear the tooth previously engaged by the pawl.

In a check controlled apparatus, a ratchet, a pawl adapted to engage said ratchet at one end for locking the same against rotation, the engaging end of said pawl being arranged'in the path of the deposited check, so as to be separated from the ratchet by the weight of the check, and means resiliently limiting such separation to sustain the deposited check in contact with the engaging end of said pawl until after the ratchet has been turned sufficiently to clear the tooth previously engaged by the pawl.

5. In a check-controlled apparatus, a ratchet, a downwardly hanging pawl pivoted at its upper end and having its lower end normally in engagement with said ratchet to lock the same against rotation, the engaging end of saidpawl being arranged in the path of the deposited check,

so as to be separated from the ratchet by the weight of the check, a spring for causing the check to maintain a sufficient separation of the pawl and ratchet to unlock the latter, and a second Spring for preventing onward progression of the check until the ratchet has been turned.

6. In a check-controlled apparatus, a rotary device, a shaft on'which said device is mounted, a pawl for locking said device, means for normally retaining said pawl in looking position, a guide for conducting a check between said shaft and said pawl, so that the weight of the check displaces the pawl from looking position against the action of said retaining means, and a resilient stop for limiting the movement of the pawl and causing the latter to arrest the coin, whereby said pawl is held in unlocking position.

7. In a check-controlled mechanism, a rotary member, a ratchet mounted thereon, a pawl arranged beside and in looking engagement with said ratchet, a check guide.

arranged to discharge a check between'such rotary member and pawl and in wedging engagement therewith, whereby the pawl is crowded away from the ratchet and unlocks the same, and a stop for arresting the out ward movement of the pawl at a' distance from the rotary member less than the diameter of the check, whereby the latter is caused to hold the pawl out of locking engagement until the rotary member and ratchet have been turned.

8. In a check-controlled mechanism the combination of a rotary member, a ratchet 1 mounted concentrically and arranged to rotate therewith, a pawl normally engaging a tooth of the ratchet and locking the same, a

' check guide arranged to deposit a'check in wedging contact between the member and pawl so that the latter is forced away from the member, a yielding stop for arresting the pawl at apoint where it is released from the ratchet and is separated from the rotary member by a distance less than the diameter of the check, and means whereby a rotation of the member removes the pawl by a further amount sufficient to permit passing of the check.

, 9. In a check-controlled apparatus a ratchet, a pawl arranged to engage the ratchet and prevent rotation thereof, means for depositing a check between the shaft of the ratchet and the awl so as to crowd the latter out of locking relation with the ery-member, a ratchet fixed upon said shaft,

a pivoted pawl adapted normally to engage said ratchet but arranged to be moved into unlocking position by the weight of the deposited check, said shaft and pawl being so arranged relatively to each other that the deposlted check is sustained edgewise by and between said shaft and pawl, and means for guiding the check into operative position between said shaft and pawl.

11. In a check-controlled vending apparatus, a rotary shaft provided with a delivery-member, a ratchet fixed upon said shaft, a pivoted pawl adapted normally to engage said ratchet but arranged to be moved into unlocking position by the weight of the deposited check, said shaft and pawl being so arranged relatively to each other that the deposited check is sustained edgewise by and between said shaft and pawl, means for guiding the check into operative position between. said shaftand pawl, and means on said ratchet for repressing said'pawl to release the check.

12. In a check-controlled vending apparatus, a delivery-shaft, a locking member associated therewith for normally locking the shaft'against operation, said member being adapted to be moved into releasing position by the deposited check, said shaft and said member being so arranged relatively to each other that the deposited check is sustained edgewise by and between the same, and means for guiding the deposited check into Engagement with said shaft and saidmemer.

In testimony whereof we have aflixed our signatures in presence of two witnesses.

ALBERT D. GROVER. EARL E. BARBER.

Witnesses:

ARTHUR H. BRowN, P, W. PEZZETTI. 

